Press release

Fri, Sep 28th 2012 08:10 pm

ULI presents scenarios to the public that complement the
setting of the space next to the new culinary institute and near Niagara Falls
State Park

The Urban Land Institute advisory
panel presented a summary Friday of its conclusions and recommendations after a
week-long analysis of potential reuses of the former Rainbow Centre Shopping
Mall in downtown Niagara Falls. A total of 200,000 square feet of reuse-ready
space on two levels remain in the building with the new $26 million Niagara
Falls Culinary Institute occupying the balance of the former mall and supported
by a recently rehabilitated 1,600-space parking structure.

"Today's event is a continuation
of Governor Cuomo's commitment to strengthening and revitalizing Niagara Falls
and the entire Western New York region," said Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy. "The governor
brought in the renowned Urban Land Institute to give us the best plan for
reusing the Rainbow Centre Mall so we can repurpose the space for new uses that
best fit the needs of the City of Niagara Falls and its residents. Now
that the plan has been completed, we can more easily attract private investment
helping to bring in new businesses, create jobs and turn the Rainbow Centre
Mall into a new and exciting component (in) the city."

The ULI panelists - composed of
eight experts from across the nation, all qualified professionals in design,
real estate and government - volunteered their time this week, staying in Niagara
Falls to study the property and its context. After a reception with
community stakeholders on Monday, they interviewed 70 key public and private
officials and community leaders on Tuesday to gain their unique insights into
the region, the market and the mall property itself. The ULI panelists
spent the remainder of the week developing their conclusions.

"We offered three workable design
concepts for the former Rainbow Centre Mall site with recommendations for a
variety of uses that meet both resident and visitor market demands," said panel
Chair Glenda Hood, president of Hood Partners LLC, and the former mayor of
Orlando, Fla. "We also suggest strategies to realize the potential for the
surrounding area and to recognize that the keys to success are collaboration
and partnerships."

The panel's conclusions included
recommendations under three major themes: market-based use scenarios;
design-based strategies addressing the building itself; and implementation
methods. The panel developed a series of possible re-use scenarios based
upon what recent market assessments suggest that is in demand downtown. Many
of these scenarios directly complement the setting of the space next to the
culinary institute and near Niagara Falls State Park. The panel also made
a series of specific design recommendations to address the building's
monolithic scale; turning its uses "inside-out" to create more active
street-level activities; and dealing with "back-of-house" services such as waste
management and deliveries. In terms of implementation, the panel offered
insights on some of the former mall's surrounding uses and areas, linkages to
the state park, and methods to procure private developers for adaptive reuse
efforts.

USA Niagara Development Corp., in
cooperation with the City of Niagara Falls, and with the assistance of National
Grid and the ULI Foundation, sponsored the effort. Similar efforts by ULI
have been successfully conducted across the country, most recently in Western
New York at the former Millard Fillmore Gates Hospital and the former Buffalo
Psychiatric Center (now known as the Richardson-Olmsted Complex) in Buffalo.

"This is an
exciting opportunity for the Niagara Falls community and for Western New
York," said Dennis Elsenbeck, regional executive for National Grid. "The advisory
panel's insights will help us realize the full economic
development potential of this important regional asset."

"The Urban Land Institute is
recognized as one of the world's most respected sources of objective
information on urban planning, growth and development so to get its
recommendations for the remaining space in the former Rainbow Centre Mall
brings confidence to the private investors and developers who may be interested
in the property," said City of Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster. "Having
ULI in town has helped us tremendously to understand how best to adapt and
reuse this existing real estate and build off the city's existing momentum. I
thank Governor Cuomo and USAN for their commitment to this project."

Through a Development Agreement
with the City of Niagara Falls, USA Niagara Development Corp. is exclusively
charged with planning and soliciting the reuse/redevelopment of the remaining
city-owned space in the building.

"We're thankful to the panel of
distinguished experts and ULI staff who dedicated so much knowledge and energy
to this assignment and we look forward to advancing their efforts by working to
leverage additional significant development and investment in the former
Rainbow Centre," said USA Niagara Development Corp. President Christopher
Schoepflin.

In September, the southern portion
of the former mall fronting on Old Falls Street re-opened as the Niagara Falls
Culinary Institute, housing Niagara County Community College's hospitality,
culinary and tourism programs, along with a number of new food-and-beverage and
retail establishments.

However, the property is not
without its challenges that will complicate future reuse. For example, the
design of the structure is somewhat unconventional; the former shopping mall
space is incorporated into the structural design of the City parking
ramp. Also, in many locations along its street faces, the ground floor
elevations of the building do not match the adjoining sidewalk
elevations. Additionally, the former mall had been designed as a
traditional inwardly oriented shopping mall and its systems/services support
this orientation, thus requiring refinements to facilitate uses that would
activate its adjoining street faces.

Founded in 1936, ULI is composed
of more than 38,000 members, representing the entire spectrum of the land use
and development disciplines, including architects, planners, real estate
brokers, builders, attorneys, and engineers. It has long been recognized
as one of the world's most respected and most reliable sources of objective
information on urban planning, growth and real estate development. As part
of its mission, the institute maintains an advisory services department for the
purpose of benefiting the general public through improved planning and
utilization of urban land.

USAN, a subsidiary of Empire State
Development Corp., is solely dedicated to the support and promotion of economic
development initiatives in Niagara Falls by leveraging private investment and
encouraging growth and renewal of the tourism industry in the City of Niagara
Falls.